The bored guard stationed at the gate stared up at the sky and watched the clouds pass by as he chewed on a rubbery candy he bought from the convenience store. The sound of loud footsteps approaching made him turn to his head to see Reizo running towards him.

"Afternoon Rei-" The guard tried to greet him, but Reizo ran up the walls of the border with blinding speed and left a note behind that said, 'Going to Sadonia for a bit'.

He reached the top within seconds and leapt off the wall with just enough force to send him flying a few hundred meters without damaging the walls again. An earful from Meitre was the last thing he wanted today.

He landed in the forest with a loud thud and sprinted towards his next destination. As he zipped through the forest, he couldn't help but worry about his two trainees after what had happened today.

I know damn well they're hiding something from me. I don't know what it is, but I pray to god it's of little concern. I can't afford to lose them at a time like this. My salvation is depending on them.

After the great vanguard massacre, what was once considered by many to be an exciting career with a chance to earn fame and glory was now considered to be a potential death sentence. Those who once sought to follow in the footsteps of the vanguards they idolized were no longer interested in meeting such a gruesome fate. As a result, the number of new vanguards joining over the years has drastically decreased, especially in Mezio.

I can't tell if I'm lucky or not that I stumbled upon these two. Testra and Coronis had to wait over a year to get their trainees, so I was thankful I found two people who were willing to become my trainees not long after I decided to become a trainer, but at the same time they're a really troublesome pair. One's incredibly reckless and wants to remain anonymous for some reason while the other is a coward who joined the vanguards despite being completely uninterested in being one. The worst part is that they're lying to me, and I don't know why.

Just thinking about his trainees and the potential problems they'll cause gave him a headache.

I really need to keep a close eye on them and make sure they're not planning anything dangerous. I don't care what they do as long there isn't any bad intentions behind it. I just need them to grow strong enough to grant me my salvation.

As time went by, the lush forest of Mezio slowly transitioned into the desert of Sadonia. After several more minutes of running, the country was in sight.

The country of Sadonia was a massive oasis with borders that were much smaller compared to Mezio. Unlike Mezio which relied on their borders for protection, Sadonia instead used massive pillars stationed around the country. Perched on each of these pillars were large majestic birds with gorgeous golden feathers that shined with the same radiance as the sun. These birds are six star monsters known as the sunra, and they served as the guardians of the country.

The sunras are relatively smart and are quite easy to train, but they are also prideful monsters who refuse to be used as transport, making them only suitable as protectors.

Upon reaching the gate, Reizo greeted the guard stationed there.

"You again?" The guard gave him a surprised look. "This is the second time I've seen you this week."

"I just here to buy something."

"I thought you were here to see your friends again. What're you here to buy anyways?"

"A sikoll shell mask."

".....And?"

"Just that."

"Seriously?" The guard was flabbergasted. "You travelled from one country to another, just to buy a mask?"

"Yes."

"Couldn't you have just bought a mask in Mezio?"

"The mask is for one of my trainees. She wears a sikoll shell mask everywhere she goes and it got damaged today, so I'm here to buy her a new one."

"Huh, that's surprisingly sweet of you. Your trainee must be a real angel if you're willing to go this far for her."

I've known my trainees for less than a week and they're already giving me a headache.

The guard scribbled something down into a log book before letting Reizo into the country.

He searched through the bustling streets of Sadonia for an accessory shop he had visited in the past. It wasn't hard to find the shop as the colourful flowers and feathers it was decorated with made it easy to spot.

This is definitely the place Feyra once dragged me into while she was drunk. Reizo thought to himself as he stood outside the building.

He stepped into the accessory shop and began grabbing as many sikoll shells masks as he could off the shelves. He placed all the masks on the counter at the cashier and squatted down to create a wooden box on the floor. The cashier gave him a strange look as she counted the masks.

"That's twenty seven masks, so that'll be-"

"Keep the change."

Reizo cut her off as he placed a few hundred dollars on the counter, stunning the cashier who wasn't even sure if she should take the money.

"S-Sir, there's no need to give me this much money!"

Without saying another word, Reizo shoved all the masks into the box and made his out out of the shop.

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"T-Thank you so much!" The cashier shouted in gratitude before Reizo left the shop. As money wasn't an issue for him, Reizo would often pay with large sums of cash and leave to avoid as much hassle as possible. It was a habit he developed after spending an entire day counting his all his money.

"Reizo? Is that you?" A female vanguard with short turquoise hair in a casual t-shirt and shorts approached him. She lifted her sunglasses to get a better look at him.

"Hey Layda." Reizo greeted her.

"I didn't expect to see you again so soon. Are you looking for Testra and Coronis for some advice on how to train your trainees again?" Layda asked.

"I'm just here to buy these." He said as he showed her the box full of masks.

"What's with all the masks?"

"Remember when I said I had a trainee who wore one of these? She damaged hers so I'm getting her a new one and hopefully enough spares for at least a year."

"Good to see that you're taking Testra's advice of treating them well to heart." Layda chuckled.

"I'll be on my way now." Said Reizo.

"Where are you going?"

"Mezio."

"What? You came all the way to Sadonia just to buy some masks and leave? At least say hi to Testra and Coronis first."

"Okay." Reizo nodded as Layda led him to a restaurant located near one of the many waterfalls around the country. As soon as they entered the restaurant, Layda ran over to a large table where eight people were seated at.

Once Testra, a woman with long braided red hair in a yellow dress who was chatting with some teenagers over a meal, got the news from Layda, she turned around and her eyes lit up as she waved at Reizo with a bright smile. She then nudged Coronis, a blonde man in a yellow shirt and blue shorts who was bragging about something to some other teenagers. The man turned around and gave a similar reaction that Testra had. Both of them ran over to Reizo and dragged him back to their table.

"It's so good to see you Reizo!"

"Yeah man, how've you been?"

"Good I guess."

Layda grabbed two extra seats for both her and Reizo.

"You wouldn't believe what he came all the way here for." Layda said as she seated herself at the table.

"Obviously he's here to get more brilliant advice from us." Coronis puffed his chest out with pride.

"I'm just here to buy some masks." Reizo said as he lifted the box full of masks.

"What? You came all the way to Sadonia just to buy some masks?" Coronis asked in disbelief.

"That's what I said!" Layda laughed.

"Have you eaten yet?" Testra asked. "I can order something for you if you want."

"I've already eaten."

I'll eat when Zeigel and Saliza finish up the missions I have for them.

"So how are things going with your trainees so far? Are they doing well?" Testra asked.

"It's hard to say." Reizo sighed. "They're showing good progress but just recently they did something incredibly stupid. It's worrying how reckless they can be."

"Sounds like they're the mischievous type. You just gotta discipline them and teach them that they shouldn't mess around with you." Said Coronis.

That's terrible advice Coronis.

"I'm sure they'll start behaving once they understand the responsibilities of being a vanguard." Testra patted him on the back.

What I'm worried about is that they'll never understand their what responsibilities are or worse, they'll choose to ignore it.

"Can I ask both of your trainees something?" Reizo asked.

"Go ahead." Coronis agreed.

"What is it that you want to ask them?" Testra asked.

"I want to know why they joined the vanguards, starting with you." Reizo pointed at a boy seated at the other end of table.

Saliza joined the vanguards because of her admiration of them, but I'm not too sure why someone like Zeigel did. One of these trainees might have a similar reason for joining.

The boy looked surprised as if he didn't expect to be the first one to answer. He quickly composed himself and cleared his throat.

"My name is Koidra and the reason why I joined the vanguards was, well, I just didn't really like the life I had before and being a vanguard seemed interesting. My parents didn't really care that I joined since they still had my older brother to rely on."

So he only joined because he was seeking a new life here and he doesn't seem to have any motivation other than that. It's not necessarily bad but I wonder how far someone can go with such little motivation.

"Alright, next." Reizo turned his gaze to the boy sitting next to Koidra.

"Is it okay if we skip my turn?" He sheepishly asked, clearly reluctant to talk about his reason for joining the vanguards.

"This guy's name is Vitren." said the oldest trainee at the table. "And he joined the vanguards because he's a disgusting pervert who was hoping that ladies would fall for him just because he was one."

Maybe I should be thankful that Zeigel at least isn't like that.

"And what about you?" Reizo asked.

"I'm Bora. I didn't have any intentions of joining the vanguards but-"

"Then you didn't have to join damn it!" A girl across the table shouted at him in frustration.

"How could I not after you went ahead and joined against my wishes! Do you know worried I was Vesfira?"

"I'm sixteen! I'm old enough to make my own decisions and I don't need you to constantly protect me!"

"Don't worry Bora. You can always count on me to protect your sister." Vitren gave the oldest trainee a charming smile.

"You stay away from my sister!" Bora growled.

"Yeah, how many times do I have to tell you that I'm not interested in you!"

"Not yet." Vitren gave her a suggestive wink that creeped her out.

"What was that?" Bora snarled.

"Nothing..."

I see, so he joined the vanguards despite not wanting to solely to protect his sister. It's possible that Zeigel is in a similar situation. If that's the case, then it explains his lack of motivation.

"So why did you join the vanguards even though your brother was against it?" Reizo asked.

"Cuz vanguards earn a lotta money and it's easy to become one. Our parents were killed in a monster attack so I need the money to live on my own and be independent."

It just sounds like she just wants a carefree life. Saliza most likely has a similar mindset considering how she takes nothing seriously.

"Alright, that leaves us with two left." Reizo turned to the remaining two trainees. "Who wants to go first?"

The first one who spoke was a boy with the best physique out of all the trainees here. He sat up straight and folded his arms as he spoke with pride.

"I am Laren of the Wreistar bloodline. It is my duty as a Wreistar to serve the vanguards, and of course you can expect great things from me."

Those with Wreistar in their names are descendants of history's first vanguard and a legendary hero, Savikairo Wreistar. It is said that those who share his blood were blessed with the same strength he possessed, but despite that, none of the trainees looked at Laren with respect.

Oh, I didn't know he's a Wreistar. Doesn't really matter anyways.

"That just leaves you." Reizo said as he turned to the last trainee who was a girl who looked as if she wasn't happy to be in the restaurant. "Why did you join the vanguards?"

"I had to." The girl answered with a somewhat forced smile.

"Oh you definitely had to. It would've been such a waste if someone as amazing as you didn't join the vanguards." Vesfira added.

"I'm not amazing, really. Honestly I'm not sure if I'm even doing good enough."

"Really? Then I must be a terrible vanguard if I've lost every sparring match I had against someone who isn't doing good enough." Koidra joked.

"Don't sell yourself short Illia." Said Bora. "You're the most capable trainee here."

"He's right my queen." Vitren added.

"Huh? I'm the only person here who's gone undefeated in every sparring match, and you're saying she's better than me?" Laren growled. "How about another spar then? We'll see who's truly the best here!"

"Laren, settle down." Testra reprimanded him with a stern look. "There's no need to make a fuss out of something so little."

"Wait, master Testra. A spar isn't such a bad idea. It's a good way to sharpen our skills after all." Illia insisted.

"I agree." Said Reizo. "It's a good opportunity to show me how you've been training them."

Now I'm interested in seeing how they fight compared to Zeigel and Saliza.

"Well, if you say so. We'll do some sparring after lunch then."